Appabattis fob reducing bods and tubes



APPLICATION FILED APR. 16, I918- Patented Oct. 28, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET II ITTI - ATTORNEY L. H. BRINKMANQ APPARATUS FOR RED-UClNG RODS AND TUBES.

APPLICATION FILED APR-16,1918.

Patented 0c; 28, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

-INVENTOR M Q ATTORNEY UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LOUIS H. BRINKMAN, OF GLEN RIDGE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO BALL ROLLED TUBE CORPORATION, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 28, 1919.

Original application filed December 6, 1916, Serial No. 135,295. Divided and this application filed April 16, 1918. Serial No. 228,857.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LoUIs H. BRINKMAN,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Glen Ridge, Essex county, State of New Jersey, have invented new and useful I mprovements in Apparatus for Reducing Rods and Tubes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for quickly, accurately and inexpenslvely reducing tubes or rods.

This application is a division of my prior application Ser. No. 135,295, filed December 6th, 1916.

Where a tube or rod is to be reduced by drawing it through a die, it becomes necessary to reduce the end of the tube or rod so that it may be entered Within the die and secured to the apparatus by which it is to be pulled. The present invention is especially adapted for reductions of the ends of rods or tubes preparatory to the drawing operation but is not limited thereto.

One object of the invention is to provide means for quickly, accurately and inexpensively reducing rods and tubes.

Other and ancillary objects of the invention will appear hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention,

Figure 1 is an end elevation of apparatus providing means for carrying out the method.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the die blocks of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the apparatus of Fig. 2, partly broken away to show sections thereof.

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the female die.

Fig. 5 is a bottom plan view of the male die.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 66 of one of the projections of the male die.

Fig. 7 is a section of the same projectlon but upon the line 7-7 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a section on the line 8-8 of the other projection of the male die.

Fig. 9 is a section of the same projection but on the line 99.

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a tube after it has been subjected to a partial reduction, and

source and the atmosphere with the pipe 4. Extending upwardly from the piston 3 is a post 5 carrying at its upper end a table 6, to which is secured a female die block 7. The tablen6 slides upon and is guided by the upright posts 8 and 9 and these posts have fixed to them a plate or bar 10 to which the male die 11 is secured.

The female die is provided with slots 12 and 13. The bottom of the slot 12 is of a width so that the bar or rod will fit within it and its bottom 14 forms a bed for receiving the tube or rod to be reduced. At 15 at one end of the bed the die is countersunk to permit the entrance of a portion of the rod or tube which is notreduced so that the reduced portion will be in proper alinement. The projection of the male; die which enters within the slot 12 is split. In this case it is formed of two separate pieces 16 and 17 secured in a slot in the male die by means of set screws 18. The lower face of the projection is similarly formed to that of the bottom of the slot in the female die having a bed 19 for receiving the tube or rod portion to be reduced, this bed 19 being opposite the bed 14, and a countersunk portion 20 at one end opposite the countersunk portion 15. The die blocks are suitably limited in their movement toward each other by any suitable means as for instance by the faces 21 and 22 of the blocks coming together. With the die blocks thus forced together, the beds 14 and 19 form a channel of oblong or elliptical cross section while the countersunk portions 15 and 20 inclose a chamber of substantially circular section. If therefore, a round tube equal to the width of the slot 12 be laid on the bed 14 and. the die blocks brought together, the

tube will be reduced along one diameter and assume an elliptical shape as shown at 23 in Fig. 10, while the round section of the tube immediately adjacent the reduced portion will fit within the circular chamber formed by the countersunk portions 15 and 20, the axes or center lines of the reduced and ulnreduced portions of the tube being maintained in line.

The members 16 and 17 produce a split, longitudinally of the slot 12, in the projection which they form for the purpose of permitting the projection to expand laterally so as to make a tight fit against the sides of the slot 12. This expansion is brought about by the spreading action exerted on the projection parts by the rounded surfaces of the tube operated upon, the projection arts being made of metal of suflicient resi ience to permit this. The expansion which occurs is a very small fraction of an inch and is for the purpose of permitting the projection from the male die to be easily entered within the slot of the female die and at' the same time procure a tight fit when and where it is needed.

The slot 13 which is of a width corresponding to the smallest diameter of the part 23 as produced by the action of the foregoing described parts, has a semi-circular shaped bed 24: at its bottom for receiving the portion of the tube to be reduced and a countersunk portion 25 at one end. The projection from the male die, consisting of the parts 26 and 27 has in its lower face a bed 28 opposite the bed 24 and a countersunk portion 29 opposite the countersunk portion 25. When the die blocks are brought together the semi-circular countersunk portions 25 and 29 will form a chamber of circular section and ofsuch size that the unreduced portion of the tube adjacent to the reduced portion will fit therein, this chamber being of the same diameter as that formed by the countersunk portions 15 and 20 already referred to. The semi-circular shaped beds 24 and 28, however, will form a circular chamber of a diameter equal to the lesser diameter of thereduced portion 23 of the tube. The coming together'of the dies therefore will produce a reduced portion of the tube of substantially circular section as shown at 30 in Fig. 11, the reduced portion being centered in line with the unreduced portion by the fitting of the end of the unreduced por-. tion in the chamber formed by the countersunk surfaces 25 and 29. The splitting of the male projection longitudinally of the slot 13 by forming'it of the parts 26 and 27 which are secured in place by the set screws 31. is for a purpose similar to that specified in connection with the projection parts 16 and 17, namely to permit expansion of the projections by the tube operated upon neraeas so as to form a tight fit with the sides of the slot 13.

The operation of the machine may be traced as follows:

The lower die block being in the position as shown, the end of the. tube which will usually be heated, may be laid on the bed 14. Pressure then being admitted beneath the piston 3, the table 6 and lower die block 7 will be forced upwardly until faces 21 and 22 come in contact. The chamber between the die blocks in the slot 12 will then be of a substantially elliptical section with a countersunk circular section at one end as before described.

The portion of the tube lying between the beds 14 and 19 will be reduced along a diameter substantially parallel to the sides of the slot 12 to substantially the desired dimension, the horizontal diameter of the tube not being materially changed and the adjacent portion of the tube of circular section fitting into the socket formed by the countersunk portions 20 and 15. The reduced and unreduced portions will thus be maintained with their axes in line. reduced portion will be of substantially elliptical cross section, the tube with the reduced portion being substantially as shown in Fig. 10. The die blocks may then be separated by withdrawing pressure from beneath the piston 3 permitting the lower die block to fall. The tube as shown in Fig. 10 is then removed from the slot and turned about its axis through 90 from the position which it occupied in the slot 12. It is then placed in the slot 13, the major diameter of the reduced portion being vertical and the minor diameter being cross-wise of the slot. The slot is made of such widtlt that the minor diameter will fit closely within it. The die blocks being again forced together, the major diameter of the reduced portion will be reduced to equal that of the minor diameter, the round section of the adjacent unreduced portion of the tube fittin into the socket formed by the counters portions 25 and 29 and maintaining the axes of the reduced and unreduced portions in line. The tube will then be of a shape as shown in Fig. 11. The lower die block may then be dropped and the tube removed.

Two operations may be effected on two difierent tubes at the same time so that a reduced tube is completed with each stroke of the die. A tube of circular section to be reduced may be placed in the slot 12 while a partially reduced tube may be placed in the slot 13 at the same time. A stroke of the die block will then initiallv reduce the tube in the slot 12 and complete the reduction of the tube in the slot 13.

While the invention has been illustrated in what i considered its best application, it

The

may have other embodiments without departing from its spirit and is not therefore limited to the structures shown in the drawmes.

What I claim is 1. In apparatus for reducing tubes or rods, the combination with die blocks ,hav-

ing a slot for receiving a tube or rod to be reduced and a cooperating projection entering within said slot and compressing the work to the desired dimension and forming an oblong cross section, another slot of a width substantially equal to the reduced dimension of the work and a projection cooperating with the last mentioned slot to reduce another dimension to substantially equal the aforesaid dimension, and means for forcing the said blocks toward each other.

2. In apparatus for reducing tubes or rods, the combination with a die block having a slot for receiving a tube or rod to be reduced, of a second die block having a projection entering said slot and cooperating therewith to reduce the tube or rod, said projection being split to permit its expansion by the work against the sides of the s 0t.

3. In apparatus for reducing tubes or rods, the combination with a die block having a slot of a die block having a projection adapted to enter in said slot and cooperatmg therewith at one portion to form a chamber conforming to work of the desired reduced section and at another portion to form a chamber conforming to the unreduced work.

a. In apparatus for reducing tubes or rods, the combination with a die block having a slot of a die block having a projection thereon, the end of said projection and the bottom of said slot having grooves cooperating to form a chamber corresponding to the desired reduced section, said die blocks also having countersunk recesses at the ends of said grooves, said recesses forming 'a chamber of cross-section corresponding to the unreduced work.

5. In apparatus for reducing tubes or rods, the combination with a die-block having a slot with a semi-elliptical bottom of a die block having a projection with a semielliptical outer face, said slot bottom and the outer face of the projection cooperating to form, when the blocks are forced together, a chamber of elliptical cross-section.

\ 6. In apparatus for reducing tubes or rods, the combination with a die block having a slot with a semi-elliptical bottom of a die block having a projection with a semielliptical outer face, said slot bottom and the outer face of the projection cooperating to form, when the blocks are forced together, a chamber of elliptical cross-section, and said die blocks having countersunk recesses of semi-circular section in the end of the projection and at the end of the slot, said semi-circular recesses cooperating when the blocks are together, to form a chamber 0 substantially circular section. 1

7 In apparatus for reducing tubes 0 rods, the combination with a die block having a slot of a second die block having a projection adapted to enter within said slot, said'slot being of a width adapted to receive the work to be reduced, said slot also having a semi-elliptical groove in its bottom and said projection having a semi-elliptical groove in its end face, said grooves cooperating when the blocks are together to form a substantial ellipse having its lesser diameter of the desired dimension of the reduced section, said dies having countersunk semi-circular recesses at the ends of said slot and projection, the diameter of said semi-circular recesses being substantially equal to the width of the slot, said die blocks also having a second slot and a second projection cooperating therewith, said second slot being of a width substantially equal to the minor axis of the elliptical section formed by the aforesaid slot and projection, said second slot and its cooperating projection having semi-circular grooves in the bottom of the slot and in the outer end of the projection, said die blocks also having countersunk semi-circular recesses at the ends of said second slot and its cooperating projection.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification this 11th day of April 1918.

LOUIS I-I. BRINKMAN. 

